This course is aimed at the student who is not only interested in botany as a science but in its application to the fields of horticulture, floriculture, and forestry. The student is introduced to plant tissues as well as to an overview of the plant body. Both monocot and dicot plants are represented. Emphasis is then placed on a thorough study of roots, stems, and leaves of woody and non-woody plants. Plant physiology, nutrition, and transport are considered. Transpiration and its effect on the plant is stressed. Transport of organic substances in translocation and pressure flow are reviewed. Plant reproduction from micro spores to eggs, pollination, and fertilization in both gymnosperms and angiosperms is studied. Methods of asexual reproduction are included. Plant growth by means of auxins and gibberellins is presented. Processes such as tropisms, photoperiodism, vernalization, senescence, and dormancy are followed. Taxonomy of the major phyla is studied. The course concludes with the application of plant study to horticulture, floriculture, and forestry. Principles of scientific inquiry are integrated throughout the course.
3 Credits